Seahorse acting weird.

[jjntm]

Originally Posted by rayjay

I'm sorry but that isn't going to work.
You haven't said if they are a pair or are two males or two females.
If both are males, it can be due to pouch emphysema and usual treatment is to evacuate the gas from the pouch holding it vertical and using something like a rubber tipped bobby pin to open the pouch to allow for the escape. If the problem persists, try a flush with fresh salt water matching the pH, s.g., and temperature of the tank water. If it still persists, flush with a diamox solution.
If not pouch emphysema, and they have bloated bodies then it is most likely internal gas bubble disease and again will have to be treated with a drug called acetazolamide. This drug, called Diamox in the medicinal trade, is very successful at treating all gas-related seahorse disorders. To use it, a solution of 1/8th of a 250 mg tablet should be dissolved in one cup of water. The solution should then be injected into ghost shrimp, which are then frozen. The prepared shrimp are then fed to the affected seahorse at a rate of two per day for four days to complete treatment. This treatment must be administered very early to work, but if done correctly, success rates can be high.
I have instead used diamox in the hospital tank water matched for ph, temperature and s.g..
Crush a diamox tablet up and dissolve in water, adding the solution to the 10g of water but discarding the part that doesn't dissolve.
After 24 hours, repeat the treatment, again matching water and changing at least 50% of the water but preferably 100%. Repeat until you have treated for 5 days.
The unfortunate part is that you need a vet to prescribe the diamox, or, have a friendly pharmacist that can get you enough of the tablets.
Can you get good clear close up pictures, full frontal view and full side view?

RAYJAY is bang on!!! DO NOT listen to your LFS!!! most of the time they don't know ****!! and are only selling you something to make money and dont care!

I have kept seahorses before, but sold them as it was too time consuming for me. Most important thing is to make sure their are NO MICRO BUBBLES!!! and the temp is correct! I used paperclips myself for the gas in the pouch... literally curl their tail around your finger, hold them tight enough they can't move but not tight enough to hurt them... gently poke the pouch opening at the top of but just under water and gently massage/squeeze the pouch until you see the air pockets bubbling out.

give it 24 hrs and repeat process if needed. If it is internal gas bubble disease follow ray jay's instructions to a tea!

[rayjay]

Actually, micro bubbles are no longer thought to be the cause of any seahorse difficulties.
Through research done by public aquariums/institutions it has been determined that the causes were not the micro bubbles but indeed are chemical imbalances within the seahorse, thus the use of diamox as treatment as it works on the kidneys to restore that balance. Diamox also works as a diuretic on the seahorse.